Joe Gonzales has worked in the Oceanside School District for over 29 years. He began his career working with students who were up for expulsion from the district, keeping his students current in their courses and mentoring them to go before the School Board of Education to explain why they should be allowed to stay and continue their education. He now teaches at El Camino High School. He has taught Psychology, U.S. History, Economics, and U.S. Government for the last 11 years. Joe has an Ethnic Studies teaching certificate from the University of Riverside and helped create the Ethnic Studies curriculum for his district where he taught its first two classes. Currently he teaches three ethnic studies classes as OUSD works to implement ethnic studies as a state graduation requirement. Joe is proud to have been a part of El Camino High’s Veterans Celebration for the past 15 years, one of the longest-running Veterans Celebration programs in California.